College Hockey

Providence Hires Former Sabres Head Coach Ron Rolston as Associate Head Coach

Providence College men’s hockey head coach Nate Leaman announced today (May 14) that Ron Rolston has been promoted to associate head coach of the program. Rolston spent the 2017-18 season as a volunteer assistant coach with the Friars.

“We are thrilled to have Ron seamlessly transition to our full-time staff after volunteering with our program last year,” Leaman said. “Ron will be excellent in developing our players. He is regarded as one of the best developmental coaches in our game and has had success at the highest levels of hockey.”

Rolston also served as an assistant coach of the U.S. Olympic Men’s Hockey Team for the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea this past February. Before coming to Providence, he spent the 2015-16 season as head coach of the Springfield Falcons, the former AHL affiliate of the Arizona Coyotes.

Prior to Springfield, Rolston served as head coach of the Buffalo Sabres during the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons after coaching the Sabres’ AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, for two seasons (2011-13). Rolston joined the Sabres organization in 2011 after spending the previous seven seasons as a head coach with the U.S. National Team Development Program (USNTDP), where he led the U.S. Under-18 team to three gold medals and a silver medal in four stints as head coach at the IIHF World Juniors Under-18 Championship.

Rolston also has experience in college hockey, serving as an assistant coach for Boston College (2002-04), Harvard (1999-02), Clarkson (1996-99), and Lake Superior State (1990-95), where he captured two national championships with the Lakers in 1992 and 1994. Rolston and Leaman both served as assistant coaches at Harvard under Head Coach Mark Mazzoleni.

A native of Fenton, Mich., Rolston attended Michigan Tech University and was a three-year hockey letterman with the Huskies from 1986-89. Rolston and his wife, Shannon, have two children (Ronan and Maeve).